Jet aircraft include nacelles for housing the engines and coupling the engines to the wings. The nacelles are contoured to reduce aerodynamic drag during operation of the aircraft. Conventional nacelles include a pair of thrust reverser cowlings that form a clam-shaped structure which wraps around the aircraft engine. During aircraft operation, the thrust reverser cowlings must be capable of withstanding considerable hoop loads caused by the high pressure of the jet exhaust stream flowing therein.
Conventional thrust reverser cowlings are pivotably coupled to a pylon at the upper portion of the nacelle. The thrust reverser cowlings can accordingly be pivoted upward to access the engine for maintenance and/or repair. During aircraft operation, the thrust reverser cowlings are closed and their distal ends are positioned proximate to each other at the lower portion of the nacelle. The distal ends of the thrust reverser cowlings can include a latching mechanism for locking the cowlings together during engine operation.
One drawback of conventional thrust reverser cowlings is that the inner walls may not be sufficiently stiff to prevent significant deflection when used with high-thrust engines. For example, during a rejected take-off, a high-thrust engine places an increased load on the blocker doors of the thrust reverser, which may cause the inner walls to deflect. Significant deflection in the inner walls of the thrust reverser changes the load path between the engine and the thrust reverser, which can damage components in the engine and thrust reverser. Due to space constraints in certain applications, it may not be possible to increase the thickness of the inner walls to preclude significant deflection. Accordingly, there is a need to increase the stiffness of the inner walls of the thrust reverser.